


mind moving low

by raspberrywildfire



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Aftermath, Ally Steve Harrington, Bat-man and Robin, Friendship, Gen, LET GUYS AND GALS BE FRIENDS, Robin owns my uwus, Sleeping Together, abuse of commas, author is not american and was born after the 80s, bed sharing, im a steve stan let me live, in the literal sense
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-14
Updated: 2019-07-14
Packaged: 2020-06-28 06:45:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19806871
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/raspberrywildfire/pseuds/raspberrywildfire
Summary: Robin had just been his co-worker and kind-of not-really friend and now he felt tied to her. He was the one that brought her into this whole mess and now she would have to live the rest of her life, knowing that such terrible, unthinkable monsters existed.[sometimes there's nowhere to go but home]





	mind moving low

**Author's Note:**

> title from jefferson airplane's white rabbit
> 
> robin and steve's friendship made my wlw heart go <3<3<3

It was something like compulsion that made Steve check that the shitheads were okay. He swept his eyes over the parking lot, counting the heads of each over and over and over until the flashing blue and red lights of the ambulances imprinted themselves under his eyelids and appeared with every blink.

One: Will, wrapped up in the arms of Mrs. Byres with Jonathan standing near. Two, three: Mike, holding on tight to El who knelt on the ground, crying as Nancy stood sentry above them. Four, five; Lucas and Erica being shepherded into their parents’ car, the former sending a longing look to where his girlfriend stood. Six; Max, red eyed and tight-lipped, standing back from her mom, step-dad and the paramedic. Steve had had to carry her out of the mall when the military came because she wouldn’t leave her brother’s side. Seven; Dustin, engulfed in a hug from his mom who was fussing over him even though he was one of the least injured. Steve had felt a little guilty at the relief that washed over him once he realized that Erica and Dustin had stayed mostly out of harm’s way up on Weathertop. He liked all the kids but, Dustin was his _boy._

With one last count, Steve heaved himself to his feet and headed over to where Robin was having her blood taken. He plonked himself down on the gurney next to her with a sigh and tugged his shock blanket tighter around his shoulders. Robin smiled weakly at him in greeting, leaning over so that their shoulders bumped. When the paramedic had gotten the sample, he taped a cotton ball over the entry point of the needle and left.

“They gave me a contract,” she said, gesturing to her other side where a thick stack of text-dense paper sat.

“Just sign them,” Steve advised, “It’s an NDA agreement. We had one last time too.”

Something in Robin’s eyes sparkled. “A non-disclosure agreement agreement?” she teased.

He would have rolled his eyes if the bruising on his face had allowed, “Sign it, smartass.”

She grinned cheekily at him but did as he suggested. He watched her write her signature on the dotted lines and suddenly realized that he didn’t know her last name. It seemed funny to him, that he had broken into a Russian underground base with her and he didn’t know her full name. It struck him then, the reality of the whole night. Robin had just been his co-worker and kind-of not-really friend and now he felt tied to her. He was the one that brought her into this whole mess and now she would have to live the rest of her life, knowing that such terrible, unthinkable monsters existed.

“What’s wrong?” Robin’s voice broke him out of his thoughts, “What are you thinking about?”

Steve shook his head, wincing a little as the action sparked pain.

“Do your parents know you’re here?” he asked, to her surprise.

“I called a friend before Operation Child Endangerment. She’ll cover for me.”

“In that case, do you want to get out of here? This place-” he gestured to the parking lot, still full of firefighters, ambulances, and military, “-isn’t the most private.”

Robin’s eyebrows knit together, “Private?”

He nodded, “I owe you an explanation.”

He was grateful for the ride, he really was. But being in a car with the girl you just confessed you have a crush on, the ex-girlfriend who broke your heart _and_ the guy you’re pretty sure she cheated on you with was a bit much. Not that he had something against Nancy and Jonathan or anything, but he still felt a bit awkward around them both and the long day had sapped his energy.

“So Robin,” Nancy said, tone betraying her desperation to lighten the heavy mood that hung around the car, “How did you and Steve meet?”

Robin sent him an incredulous look that he could clearly read as saying ‘ _is she fucking for real right now’._ Steve shrugged helplessly in response.

“Well,” Robin met Nancy’s eyes in the rear-view mirror and gestured down at the matching sailor outfits, “We work- uhh, work _ed_ together.”

“Oh,” Nancy replied for some reason, as if she thought there was some deeper reason for them to have been dressed like that in a secret Russian base. _Honestly_ , Steve thought, did she think they were going to whip out some spinach and beef up like Popeye?

Jonathan, whose aversion to societal niceties Steve never thought he would be thankful for, took the break in conversation for the opportunity it was, and put in a cassette. They were quiet for the rest of the ride, listening to some indie band sing about the moon.

Robin fell asleep not too far from Steve’s, head lolling down and lips slightly parted. He nudged her awake when they pulled into the drive. He was exhausted too, and sore to boot but the night wasn’t over yet. They both got out of the car, and he directed Robin to the back door he always left open; damn Russians still had his keys. She headed off a little hesitantly but left after he reassured her that he’d be following close behind. Steve leaned against the driver’s side of the car, where Nancy had rolled down the window, to thank her for the ride.

“Of course,” she smiled at him, placing a gentle hand on the one he had resting on the window frame, “It may not be the best time to say this but; I’m happy for you two.”

“Happy for us?” he echoed, leaning back in confusion.

“You and Robin,” she said, her expression open and earnest.

“We’re not-“ Steve began to protest but Nancy cut him off.

“It’s _okay,_ Steve. I’m glad you’re moving on.”

“ _I said_ we’re not-” he gave up at the sight of her knowing look, “you know what? It’s been a long day. Goodnight Nance.”

He backed away from the car with a little wave and nodded at the other boy who returned the gesture, “Jonathan.”

As if on cue, Robin opened the front door. His house may have been larger than average for Hawkins but it wouldn’t have taken her that long to get from back door to front. She had probably been watching the exchange through the peephole, he thought to himself.

“What was that about?” she asked out of the corner of her mouth as she stood in the doorway and waved the other two goodbye.

Steve puffed his cheeks up like a bullfrog, letting it out in one long gust of breath, and ran a hand through the knots in his disheveled hair.

“She presumed we were dating. I tried to correct her but-“ he shrugged. To be honest, he was just too tired to care.

“Explains her question to me in the car,” Robin pointed out, yet again proving just how much better she was at lateral thinking than him.

“Not a weird assumption to make, I guess,” Steve led her down the hall and into his kitchen, “I’ve never really had a girl as just a friend before. I only hung out with Carol if Tommy was there so… you’d be the first.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” she said, hoisting herself up to sit on his counter-top, “Besides, not many girls can claim to be Steve ‘The Hair’ Harrington’s _first_.”

Steve leaned back against the counter opposite and tilted his head upward to rest on the cabinet on the wall. His bruises looked worse in direct light.

“You’d be the first girl to _know_ you were,” he told the ceiling.

He looked over to Robin when she didn’t respond and saw she was looking quizzically at him, her forehead scrunched.

“I,” he cleared his throat, “I lied about my, uh, previous experience my first time.”

Robin nodded slowly, probably still wondering how much of the drug was still in his system for him to come out with a thing like that. He was grateful when she broke the stiff silence that began to settle between them by changing the subject.

“Can I use your phone? The friend that’s covering for me, I should probably update her.”

“Yeah, of course,” he responded, “It’s just in the hall.”

Robin hopped down from the counter and made for the hall but she paused in the doorway, turning back towards him.

“Could you start the call? Just, if I’m supposed to be with her and her mom picks up…” she trailed off.

“Oh, no, yeah,” Steve followed her to the phone, “Totally

“Just ask for Lori,” she advised, shoving the receiver into his hand as she dialed, “She’s Lori Green.”

“What if she asks who’s calling?” Steve hissed at her, suddenly nervous.

He had never really had to lie to his parents before. They were seldom around enough to be lied to and once he became a teenager, they let him do what he wanted so long as he didn’t do anything to damage the Harrington’s good name.

Robin rolled her eyes, “You can’t lie to save your life. Just tell the truth.”

“Hey!,” Steve exclaimed, “I take offense to- Hi Mrs Green.”

Robin tensed, not trusting Steve to not completely mess this call up.

“Sorry for calling so late,” she heard Steve say into the line. It made her realize that it was nearing midnight. They were lucky that all this nonsense happened on the Fourth of July, otherwise getting out of it would be a lot more difficult. She watched as Steve oozed a charisma she had never seen before into the phone, no doubt charming Lori’s mom and avoiding having to explain why, exactly, he was calling.

She took the phone when he offered it.

“Lori? It’s Robin.”

There was silence for a moment before she heard her friend’s voice in a furious whisper.

“Are you kidding me? You ask for me to cover for you with _no explanation_ and then when I hear from for the first time in _two whole days_ , you’re calling from Steve _fucking_ Harrington’s house? Have you been there the whole time?”

Robin winced at the beratement, “Technically it’s only been a little more than 24 hours.”

Another pause and then, “24 hours with _Steve Harrington_.”

“Yes but-“

“I thought you didn’t even _like_ him! Why didn’t you _say_ you were going to do this? Tell me, is he as good with his fingers as everyone says he is?”

Beside her, obviously eavesdropping, Steve’s eyes grew wide -or, as wide as they could with all the bruising. His chest subconsciously puffed up a bit, no doubt at the compliments to his prowess. She gave him a little slap upside the head to humble him and he exaggeratedly clutched at the spot. Robin hastily wrapped up her call with Lori, promising to tell her everything if she would keep covering for her until the morning. When she finally hung up the phone, Steve looked contemplative.

“Do I,” he ran a hand through his hair, a self-soothing motion, “Do I still matter? Like, I’ve graduated and I thought I ‘fell from grace’ or whatever when Billy came and took my place in high school. Not to mention that my girlfriend left me for Jonathan Byers of all people.”

She took a little pity on him. Despite what he had said earlier it was clear to her that a lot of his self-worth was still tied up in his popularity and how people perceived him.

“I’m only going to say this once, dingus, so listen up. You’re attractive. So much so that people overlook that you’re a complete airhead. That gives you so much power over most girls and no one can take away from you,” suddenly needing to change the mood, she added an addendum, “Not even by pummeling your face in.”

“Thanks?” he said, smiling a little.

She was going to reply that it was less of a compliment and more educating the ignorant, when a huge yawn rose up out of her lungs. It spread from her to Steve, mouths stretching wide as the stress of the day caught up with them.

“I haven’t forgotten that you promised me an explanation,” she reminded him, “But I don’t know if I can handle the whole story tonight.”

“Yeah I don’t know if I have the energy to explain it to you without falling asleep halfway through,” he agreed.

“I kind of told Lori I was staying over, do you mind if I-“

“No totally it’s fine, I have a guest room.”

Steve lead her up the stairs to the first floor and she used the time to examine his house and decorations. It looked like something out of a magazine or a catalogue, a house just for show. The only personal items that she could see were the family photos that lined the stair’s ascent; a wedding, a baptism and a whole host of school sports photos. Steve stopped when they reached the landing.

“That’s my room, beside it is your room and the bathroom is there,“ he said, pointing at each of the doors in turn, ”You probably want to shower. I’ll leave some clothes outside the door so you don’t have to get back into your uniform.”

Unsure of how to respond and a feeling a little out-of-place in the Harrington’s perfect home, especially when a few days ago she didn’t really consider him a friend, Robin nodded.

“Thanks,” she said lowly as she passed by him to enter the bathroom.

Robin couldn’t sleep.

Her shower had done a lot to calm her shaky nerves but it also reminded her body of the exhaustion that had wrapped itself around her bones and made itself at home there. She had fully expected to fall asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow but she was having no luck. The problem wasn’t the bed, or the soft tshirt and shorts that Steve had supplied for her but how empty the room was, and how full her head. She couldn’t stop her thoughts, her mind racing with so much to process and the promise of more to come. _How does he cope?_ she thought, until she finally processed the sound that she had presumed was coming from foxes outside, _oh he doesn’t._

Steve was having a nightmare.

She didn’t know what to do. People had nightmares all the time, right? Maybe it would pass. She told herself that he would probably be fine, and that it’d be weird for her to just go barging in there when there was nothing she could really do to help. But when Steve let out a particularly heart-wrenching cry she found herself on her feet, covers thrown back.

She padded over to her door and opened it. Standing on the landing, Steve’s whimpers were louder than before, the sound having to travel through the wood of his bedroom door instead of the wall they shared.

“Steve,” she called through the door, thinking that maybe waking him with a shout would be less embarrassing for them both. To her dismay, the noises continued.

She steeled herself before opening his door and was glad she did so once she entered. Steve looked awful. He was tossing and turning in his bed, almost thrashing, and his sheets had pooled around his hips in a messy tangle. His bare chest was covered in a thin sheen of sweat and his still-wet hair was in disarray. She walked closer to his bed and saw how aggravated his bruising had become. His cheeks shone in the faint light the open door let in.

He was crying.

That was the catalyst for her action. She leaned over and grasped his shoulder with a firm hand.

“Steve,” she called again, shaking him gently, “Steve, you have to wake up.”

After a few good shakes, Steve’s eyes flew open. Robin flinched back when he started forward slightly but the sight of her seemed to reassure him that whatever horror he had been experiencing had passed. He relaxed into his pillows and sent a thankful smile her way. She straightened up and ran a quick eye over his torso, he had gone to bed shirtless so there was a lot more of his skin on show than she was used to. She noted the bruise on his side and a few scrapes here and there but it seemed that the bruises on his face were the worst of his wounds.

Steve assessed her in turn and saw a lack of the last vestiges of sleep lingering around her eyes, she hadn’t slept. The look in her eyes questioned him, asking _is this what’s in store for me?_ He turned onto his side to face her and moved backward, increasing the distance between them.

“Get in,” he told her, patting the space he had just made, “I don’t bite.”

She took a reluctant step backward, “I don’t want you to take it the wrong way-“

“I know y-you like girls,” she felt her breath catch. No one had ever said it out loud so plainly before, like there was nothing weird about it, “I get it, I really do. Now get into bed so we can sleep.”

She crawled into bed with him regardless of her apprehension. For one, she wasn’t kidding when she called him a bad liar earlier, if he was planning something sly it’d be written all over his face. And for another, she was so soul-crushingly tired. Doubtless he was the same.

As Steve pulled the covers up over them, she thought about how envious any girl would be to be in her place. Here she was, in Steve Harrington’s house, in Steve Harrington’s room, invited into Steve Harrington’s _bed._ And it was all wasted on her. If she were a normal girl, it would be everything she could want from a summer night. But she wasn’t a normal girl.

As if vaguely sensing the theme of her thoughts, Steve spoke. “If you’re a dyke-“

“Lesbian,” she interrupted, adrenaline spiking even though she knew Steve was fine with _it_ , with _her_ , “Don’t ever call me a dyke.”

“Uh, okay,” he agreed, sounding somewhat confused, “If you’re a _lesbian_ , why did your friend think we were having sex? Do you, uh, like guys too?

“I wish,” Robin laughed, hollow and harsher than she meant to, “Lori doesn’t know. No one knows.”

“I do.”

“Yeah,” Robin turned her face to look him in the eye, “You do.”

She found she couldn’t hold steady eye contact for long, flicking from his left eye to his right then to the window behind him which was covered by the most efficient blackout curtains she had ever seen. Not a scrap of light peaked through them, leaving the room lit a soft yellow by the light coming from the door she had left open.

“We should date,” announced Steve suddenly. Her eyes snapped back to his face.

“Jesus, Steve!” she exclaimed, scrambling to get out of his bed.

“No, not like that!” he said desperately, propping himself up on one hand and reaching out for her with the other, “Like friends! Like a cover!”

She stood at the side of his bed and folded her arms.

“You want us to pretend to date?” she asked skeptically, “Are you sure you don’t have a concussion?”

“Ha ha, very funny,” he made a face at her, body tense “It wouldn’t be hard to sell? Dustin, Nancy, and your friend Lori already seem buy it. You’d be safe from people wondering why you don’t date and I- well, I don’t think I’m gonna date anytime soon. I’m over Nancy but I think after all _this_ I want to focus on-“

“-your kids,” she finished for him.

“No! Me!”

She stood for a moment, thinking about his offer.

“That’s… kind of sweet in a weird, dingus way but-“ she shrugged, ”I’m good.”

His body relaxed and he mirrored her action, “It was just an idea.”

“I do all the thinking around here,” she told him mock-sternly, getting back into bed, “Leave the ideas to me and you be the eye candy.”

Once settled, the quiet and the dark reminded her of why she came. She curled in on herself slightly as her mind presented her with the horrors she had gone through that day. She tried to focus on her breathing to lull herself into a hopefully dreamless sleep when Steve’s hand found hers under the covers and held on tight.

“I’d be lying if I said it was easy,” he whispered, “But Robin, _you have me_.”

 _Who had_ you _? Who helped_ you _?_ she didn’t ask, because the evidence pointed to Nobody.

“Come closer,” Steve opened his arms to gather her in them, “It’ll help, I promise.”

And as she fell asleep to the sound of his heart beating and the promise of an explanation in the morning, she thought:

_What happened to you, Steve Harrington?_

**Author's Note:**

> please blame any ooc-ness on their exhaustion, hunger, thirst and general upside down weirdness
> 
> there may be more of this in me, we'll see ;)))))


End file.
